252 THE STORY OF PLANT LIFE 



Bogs and moors are the habitats of this species. 

 It is found on sandy soil in the wet heath sub- 

 association, on siHceous soils in sessile oakwoods, in 

 the fen association, carr association, fen carr, on 

 lowland moors, valley moors with reed swamp. 

 Beak sedge association, and in grass moor on the 

 upland moors of the Pennines. 



Bog Myrtle has the shrub habit. It is erect, or 

 nearly so, fragrant when rubbed, and flowers appear 

 before the leaves. The leaves are inversely ovate to 

 lance-shaped, or wedge-shaped, coarsely toothed 

 towards the tip, broader above, fragrant, resinous, 

 deciduous, downy below, blunt or acute, shortly- 

 stalked. 



The flowers are in short, stalkless, erect, reddish- 

 brown catkins, achlamydeous. The male spikes are 

 racemose, crowded, erect, with two spreading, shining, 

 broadly ovate, concave bracteoles. There are four 

 stamens. The anthers are red. The female flower 

 has two to four bracteoles, and two syncarpous 

 carpels having a single, erect, orthotropous ovule. 

 They are shorter than the male flowers and the 

 styles project. The fruit is a small resinous nut, 

 with a waxy exocarp, lens-shaped, attached to the 

 persistent bracteoles. 



Bog Myrtle is 2 to 3 ft. high, flowering from June to 

 July, and is a perennial shrub. 



As the catkins hang down the pollen is protected. 

 Sometimes, though the plant is usually dioecious, the 

 flowers are complete. The pollen is dust-like, and 



